These Actions Will Motivate Companies To Move Jobs Out Of The Us
Prominent American companies like Duolingo and Boston Consulting Group have already announced that, rather than rescinding offers to those affected by the new visa rules, they will simply move those jobs to Canada or elsewhere. And they are not outliers, nor is this without precedent. In a recent paper, I show that U.S. multinational companies have already offshored tens of thousands of jobs and opened new foreign affiliates in response to H-1B visa restrictions much less severe than those being implemented now. The countries that benefited the most at the timeand are likely to benefit once again nowwere China, India, and Canada. I find that U.S. multinational companies particularly increased employment in those three locations in response to the growing constraints of the H-1B visa cap, even as U.S.-based employment at the same firms remained flat. That response is likely to be amplified under the much more restrictive regime being put into place now, particularly as remote work becomes more common. In other words, rather than going to Americans, those jobs are likely to go to another country.
Is It About Politics
Trump has repeatedly leaned into the issue of immigration to fire up his base. Building a wall and barring entry for Muslims were central 2016 planks. It is a powerful issue for the older, white and evangelical voters at the heart of his coalition. On Tuesday, Trump’s re-election campaign sent an email to supporters promoting the tweet and saying their “input is crucial to the President’s next steps.”
But overall, the U.S. isn’t sold on Trump’s vision. Polls show that Americans oppose the wall and are split on the restrictions on travel from majority-Muslim nations. A recent YouGov survey found the U.S. evenly divided, with 46 percent approving of the president’s handling of immigration and 46 percent disapproving.
Protecting American Workers Halting Foreign Guest Worker Admissions
On June 22, to address record-high levels of COVID-19-related unemployment, President Trump issued a proclamation temporarily suspending the entry of foreign guestworkers into the United States for the remainder of 2020. The executive action affects the H-1B program, and several other nonimmigrant guestworker programs, including those H-2Bs not critical to the food-supply chain, certain H-4s, as well as L and certain J visas. The proclamation could potentially open up 525,000 positions, according to the White House.
FAIR president Dan Stein described the proclamation as welcome news for the tens of millions of Americans who have lost jobs as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. Among the recently unemployed are workers of all skill levels who are ready, willing, and able to fill jobs as our economy recovers.
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Supreme Court Permits Administration To Enforce Safe Third Country Rule
On September 11, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court handed a major win to the Trump administration by temporarily permitting the nationwide enforcement of the safe third country asylum rule that has spent the previous two months bouncing around the lower courts. The rule, which was fast-tracked by the administration in July, would deem migrants ineligible for asylum if they failed to make their request in a designated safe third country which they had passed through on their way to the United States.
The rule was first blocked by U.S. District Court Judge Jon Tigar of the Northern District of California who issued a nationwide injunction immediately after it took effect. However, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals narrowed the California-based judges injunction to states within the circuit, permitting the rule to remain in place in Texas and New Mexico while being blocked in California and Arizona.
Trump Administration Signs Asylum Agreement With El Salvador
On September 20, the United States signed a cooperative asylum agreement with El Salvador stipulating that migrants from third countries who would otherwise seek refuge in the U.S. would be permitted to remain in El Salvador. In exchange, the U.S. pledged American investment in the Central American nation. Although few details are presently available, the agreement is similar to one made with Guatemala in July. It reflects the Trump administrations strategy of reaching agreements with individual countries in the region as a means to stem the flow of migrants to the U.S.
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What Changes Has The Administration Implemented
Undermining asylum: The Trump administration has repeatedly imposed new restrictions on asylum seekers, making it nearly impossible for many people to claim protection in the United States. These restrictions include preventing migrants from applying for asylum if they traveled through another country before reaching the U.S. if they didnt apply in the previous country. The administration has also exported its asylum provision obligations to ill-equipped countries like El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala.
In January 2019, the Trump administration began implementing its Remain in Mexico policy, which forces Central Americans seeking asylum to return to Mexicofor an indefinite amount of timewhile their claims are processed. Since the start of the pandemic, the U.S. government has postponed all immigration court hearings, effectively stranding asylum seekers in Mexico. To make matters worse, asylum seekers are still required to go to their port of entry on the day of their previously scheduled court date to receive a new notice to appearor face a deportation order for not showing up. Learn more.
Now the administration is exploiting the pandemic to impose a categorical ban on people seeking asylum, further endangering the lives of migrantsincluding children.
Graham Says He Will Introduce Legislation To End Birthright Citizenship
Sen. Lindsey Graham said that he supported Trumps proposal to end birthright citizenship and would introduce legislation to end it. Graham wrote in a series of tweets,
| Finally, a president willing to take on this absurd policy of birthright citizenship. Ive always supported comprehensive immigration reform and at the same time the elimination of birthright citizenship. The United States is one of two developed countries in the world who grant citizenship based on location of birth. This policy is a magnet for illegal immigration, out of the mainstream of the developed world, and needs to come to an end. In addition, I plan to introduce legislation along the same lines as the proposed executive order from President @realDonaldTrump. I will be introducing legislation to deal with the issue of birthright citizenship for children of illegal immigrants — in a prospective manner — as I have always contended it has become a magnet for illegal immigration in modern times. |
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Justice Department Sues California Over Sanctuary Policies
The Justice Department escalated its war on dangerous sanctuary jurisdictions, alleging in a lawsuit that three recently enacted California laws obstruct enforcement of federal immigration law and harm public safety. In July 2018, a federal judge rejected much of the DOJs challenge. The federal government appealed the unfavorable decision and is making its case against sanctuary jurisdictions in front of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Trump Administration Cracks Down On Birth Tourism
On January 23, the U.S. Department of State issued a new rule cracking down on birth tourism. The rule gives consular officers greater leeway to deny B nonimmigrant visas to foreign nationals whom they believe are traveling to the United States for the primary purpose of obtaining U.S. citizenship for a child by giving birth in the country. The rule also codifies a requirement that applicants seeking medical treatment in the U.S. must demonstrate their ability to pay for the treatment. The State Department says the rule will address concerns about the attendant risks of this activity to national security and law enforcement, including criminal activity associated with the birth tourism industry.
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Some Things Have Changed Though Right
Yes, but compared with the border policies, those changes have had a less visible effect.
The current administration raised the cap on refugee admissions for this year to 125,000, the highest level since 1993. It also expanded the Temporary Protected Status program, which grants protection from deportation and work authorization to immigrants already in the U.S. because their countries are deemed too unsafe to return to. Immigrants from Myanmar and Venezuela are now eligible for TPS, and newer arrivals from Haiti, Somalia, Syria, and Yemen are also newly eligible.
Both moves are in sharp contrast to the Trump administration, which set the refugee admissions cap at 15,000 in its last year, and also sought to reduce or end TPS for many immigrants, only to be blocked by the courts.
Another area where the Biden administration has made a U-turn from the Trump era is on interior enforcement by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement .
The number of immigrants in ICE detention has , according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University , because the administration has taken a softer approach toward the estimated 11 million unauthorized immigrants in the country.
Large ICE workplace raids have been ended, and the designation of sensitive locations where agents cant make arrests like schools, hospitals, and religious institutions has been expanded.
Key Facts About Us Immigration Policies And Bidens Proposed Changes
Since President Joe Biden took office in January 2021, his administration has acted on a number of fronts to reverse Trump-era restrictions on immigration to the United States. The steps include plans to boost refugee admissions, preserving deportation relief for unauthorized immigrants who came to the U.S. as children and not enforcing the public charge rule that denies green cards to immigrants who might use public benefits like Medicaid.
Biden has also lifted restrictions established early in the coronavirus pandemic that drastically reduced the number of visas issued to immigrants. The number of people who received a green card declined from about 240,000 in the second quarter of the 2020 fiscal year to about 79,000 in the third quarter . By comparison, in the third quarter of fiscal 2019, nearly 266,000 people received a green card.
The Biden administration has proposed legislation that would create new ways for immigrants to legally enter the United States. The bill would also create a path to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants living in the country.
This analysis relies on data from various sources within the U.S. government, including the Department of Homeland Security, Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Department of State, Federal Register announcements and public statements from the White House.
Here are key details about existing U.S. immigration programs, as well as Bidens proposed changes to them:
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Deporting Temporary Protected Status Holders
President Trump is seeking to deport up to 98% of Temporary Protected Status holders, who gained the right to live and work in America after their home countries were hit by conflict or natural disasters. Democrats have sought to fold protections for TPS holders, many of whom have been here for decades and have American-born children, into legislative efforts to protect Dreamers.
Reorganization Of Department Of Homeland Security
Saying he wanted to go in a “tougher direction,” Trump began a major reorganization of the DHS on April 5, 2019, first by withdrawing his nomination of Ron Vitiello to head Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Two days later he forced the resignation of DHS secretary Kirstjen Nielsen. Trump named Customs and Border Protection commissioner Kevin McAleenan to succeed Nielsen, although by law Under Secretary of Homeland Security for ManagementClaire Grady was in line to succeed Nielsen Grady was reported to be leaving the administration. Director of Citizenship and ImmigrationLee Cissna also left. The reorganization was reported to be on the recommendation of Trump advisor Stephen Miller, an anti-immigration hardliner. CNN reported that during March 2019 meetings Trump demanded that asylum seekers be denied entry into the country, which he was advised was contrary to law and could expose border agents to personal legal liability. He also demanded that the port of El Paso be closed by noon the next day. CNN quoted a senior administration official as saying, “At the end of the day, the President refuses to understand that the Department of Homeland Security is constrained by the laws.”
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How Do Americans Feel About Immigration
A 2021 Gallup poll found that 75 percent of Americans surveyed considered immigration to be good for the United States. At the same time, however, the majority felt that illegal immigration was a significant threat to U.S. national security.
According to a separate poll conducted by Vox and Data for Progress the same year, 69 percent of voters surveyedincluding a majority of Republicanssupported a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants if they meet certain requirements. A greater share supported citizenship for immigrants brought to the United States when they were minors, who are often referred to as Dreamers.
New Clues On What Immigration Will Look Like In A Second Trump Term
Donald Trump takes the oath of office on January 20, 2017, in Washington, DC.
Getty Images
What would it mean for U.S. immigration policy if, on January 20, 2025, Donald Trump was sworn in as president of the United States? Many people expect a crackdown on illegal immigration. However, recent clues and past actions indicate the more significant impact of a second Trump presidency would be on legal immigration, including the admission of refugees, family immigrants and high-skilled professionals.
Personnel Is Policy: Former President Trumps top allies are preparing to radically reshape the federal government if he is re-elected, purging potentially thousands of civil servants and filling career posts with loyalists to him and his America First ideology . . . The heart of the plan is derived from an executive order known as Schedule F, according to Axios. The publication also reported American Moment, a pro-Trump group, wants to replace current federal workers with applicants who want to cut not just illegal but also legal immigration into the U.S.
It is easy to see how this would result in more restrictive immigration policies. After White House adviser Stephen Miller received pushback the first year he reduced the annual refugee cap, at least one career government employee was reassigned so the individual could not interfere in the future, according to Border Wars: Inside Trumps Assault on Immigration by Julie Hirschfeld Davis and Michael D. Shear.
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What Are Other Pending And Proposed Changes To The Immigration System
Categorically ending asylum: The administration continues to propose multiple rules and policy changes that seek to shrink the scope of the asylum system including limiting eligibility criteria, eroding due process pathways, and creating administrative and financial obstacles when applying for asylum. Lear more about the specific proposed changes to the asylum system.
Attacking DACA and TPS: Trump has worked to strip legal status from more than one million people. Despite a Supreme Court ruling to uphold Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals , has since undermined the Supreme Courts decision and is continuing to dismantle the program- again jeopardizing the futures of more than 700,000 people who came to the U.S. as children and the 300,000 who could have qualified for DACA. And by ending Temporary Protected Status for most countries, Trump is ending legal status for hundreds of thousands of people and creating a new population of unauthorized immigrants subject to the threat of deportation. A recent court ruling reversed a previous decision that protected TPS holdersand in as little as six months, deportations could begin. Read more about TPS and DACA.
Changing the structure of the refugee resettlement program: The administration also issued an executive order that permits state and local officials to block resettlement in their cities and states. In January 2020, a judge issued a temporary injunction that halts the policy for now.
Entrepreneurial Immigrants Will Start Businesses Outside Of The Us
Nearly half of all Fortune 500 companies were founded by immigrants or their children. A quarter of all new firms are created by immigrants. Research shows that not only are immigrants 80 percent more likely than Americans to start new firms, but that the higher propensity to start new firms applies to all firm sizes. As a result, immigrants act more as job creators than job takers immigrant-founder firms create 42 percent more jobs than native-founder firms. So, if immigrants originally destined for the U.S. instead choose to go to Canadafor exampleinstead, they also create new jobs for Canadians, rather than for Americans.
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Investors Will Seek Investment Opportunities Elsewhere
Jobs are not all that will go to other countries as a result of these expansive visa bans. Foreign investment is tightly linked to immigration even ancestral links from immigration a century ago continue to drive foreign investment today. Innovation is also tightly linked to immigration. Immigrants patent at double the native rate, increase firm patenting, and enhance the innovativeness of native scientists by introducing new and complementary knowledge and ideas. History provides a clear example of what happens to American innovation when immigration flows are restricted immigration quotas in the 1920s caused a significant decline in American innovationat least in part because Americans were actually less innovative without immigrants around. Furthermore, Israeli science benefited when at least some scientists moved there instead. Halting immigration will not only reduce innovation and investment in the U.S., but will likely send that innovation and investment to countries that welcome foreign talent with open arms.
President Trumps order to block hundreds of thousands of immigrants from working in the U.S. will not improve unemployment for American citizens. It will not aid economic recovery. Instead, it will send jobs, innovation, and investmentand hence economic growthto those countries who are not so shortsighted as to ban the very people who are instrumental in ensuring Americas future economic prosperity.
